The NFL announced this week that they will soon award $40 million to scientists for medical research on brain trauma. That’s a lot, in the sense that if I had $40 million I would change it into gold coins and try to swim in it. But is it a lot of money to the NFL?

I think a good comparison here is the other major football-related expenditure in the news this week: Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford’s 5-year, $135 million contract. It will make him the highest-paid player in the NFL.

That’s $27 million per year, on average. The NFL has not said how many years’ worth of research the $40 million will cover, but they have promised to spend $100 million in total. So Stafford’s pay will beat out not just other players, but also the league’s entire investment in independent medical research.